Presidents Putin and Erdoğan present a developed relationship of partners ready to overcome their difficulties.

Illegal US pressure and interference in the increasingly dangerous case of Venezuela is only one first-class show piece of how far good Russian-Turkish relations may reach. Biggest challenge today, however, is a constructive solution to contradictions in Syria, which are situated much closer to both partners and their troops. And, of course the third partner in the Astana process, Iran, should never be forgotten.

Last Wednesday’s meeting of the two presidents became necessary, after Turkey’s failure to achieve the promised progress in Idlib province coincided unhappily with Turkish plans on establishment of a „25-30 km“ (Erdoğan, joint press conference) security belt on Syrian ...

US foreign policy is (mis)using Kurdish nationalism since succeeding to British global aspirations in the wake of WW2

The Kurdish people pride themselves in a very old history, forerunners reaching back to early Neolithic settlers up to 10’000 years B.C.. Sykes-Picot map drawing of 1916 willingly sacrificed their national territorial aspirations to serve British and French imperialist colonialism. Today Kurdish population is estimated to count between 30-45 million people – estimates suffering from lack of data –, divided to mainly four countries: Turkey (15-20 million), Iran (11 million), Iraq (8 million) and Syria (estimates between 1.6-2.5 million).

US covert and overt policy is using Kurdish tribes to destabilize all four home countries, including terrorism...

Hamas Dpty. Foreign Affairs Minister Ghazi Hamad and German politician Christoph Hörstel, Federal Chairman of New Center party, have concluded their fruitful meeting in Turkey’s Istanbul last (Thursday) night.
Both sides agreed, that Hörstel is to meet the top Hamas leadership in the very near future.
It was further agreed, that Hamas is to discuss internally to extend the declaration of security and equality for all Jews under a possible future Palestinian government, which is being currently under consultation.

The additional text as proposed may contain the following statement:
“Whosoever has committed crimes against humanity, such as multiple murders, torture etc., should leave Palestine – we will join hands with all Palestinians and not try to take them to justice...

The news came Wednesday noon and were as brief as precise: Turkish president Erdoğan announced, that he plans to launch a military operation in North-East Syria in the coming days. Two weeks earlier, the US army was reported by a CIA-backed publication to have set up military installations, three in Tal Abyad and two in Kobane. Preparations show, that Erdoğan plans to move quickly:

– in previous days, Turkish army has brought army personnel of the 3rd Brigade as well as supplies to the Syrian border.

– on Wednesday, Turkish troops took down walls of the city of Ras al-Ain

– at the same time, US forces set up an observation post near the town of...

Reports about the two ex-IS cities, Mosul and Raqqa, drive tears into the eyes of any decent researcher, who still enjoys possession of a warm heart.

Dry facts are quickly told: Mosul is the fifth biggest Iraqi city behind the capital Baghdad, located 400 kilometers north of it on the right bank of Tigris river, opposite the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh on the east bank. The invasion mainly of US forces from „the coalition of the willing“ in 2003 caused great damage to the city, resistance and a fierce and brutal battle to drive the out led to large-scale further destruction. US counter-insurgency („CoIn“) battle style without much care of the civil population raised alarm and opposition worldwide, with detailed reports surfacing all over the media...

The INF treaty covers intermediate range nuclear forces – but Trump’s handling might result in wide range and long term consequences, trading US political interests for short term gains of their arms industry.

Two of the many problems analysts face with US president Trump’s political moves are, that the gap between announcement and factual decision and the life cycle of a decision are not really predictable. This bulk of trouble is overshadowed by the fact, that this US president is used to see any of his moves in the light of two permanent campaigns he is working for: public relations in general and re-election specifically. The mere mentioning of these criteria implicates what everybody can see easily: Trump is simply not the type of person for serious long-term planning, programming and...

Seven year-old Syria conflict gets a shiny new peace building format – while western propaganda media look the other way.

That’s certainly unprecedented but interesting and symptomatic: The biggest German daily „Süddeutsche“ squeezes a few lines on its front page governed by regional elections in the state of Hesse and the umpteenth article on the truly terrible and deplorable synagogue killing spree in Pittsburgh, USA. Leading opinion shapers such as „Spiegel online“ and New York Times enumerate a few dry facts – and that’s it: Russian president Putin, his Turkish colleague Erdoğan, German chancellor Merkel and French president Macron met on a sunny Saturday afternoon in Istanbul overlooking the Bosporus...

Russian diplomacy is – yet again – at its best: The final battle for peace and stability in Syria is overdue, but partnership with newcomer Turkey is being rated so high in Moscow, Tehran and Damascus, that it’s obviously worth further postponement of the next and probably last big battle. That is the basic outcome of Monday’s very important Russian-Turkish Sochi summit.

A quick look back: Though Turkey hat vented doubts against the wisdom of an all-out attack in Idlib province, even after the September 7 summit of the successful Middle East policy triangle of Russia, Turkey and Iran, had been viewed as go-ahead for the bombing campaign...

The astonishing part of the latest Tehran summit including Russian president Putin and his Turkish colleague Erdogan is certainly, that the latter can voice his wish for a peaceful, settlement – and in the last picture still stands very close to Iran’s president Ruhani, who seems to have moved an inch or two away from Putin, off-center, to express some closeness. There is no visible shift in the Russia-Turkey relations. Ankara is regularly sending supply and reinforcement convoys through Syrian territory to strengthen its most distant military outpost, just south of Morek in northern Hama Province, Subdistrict Soran, bordering on the southern part of Idlib Province.

French President Macron issued his idea in two steps – in a visible effort not to overload the public. The first step came on Monday, August 27, in front of the annual conference of French ambassadors; the young leader pushed for a more independent European Union to organize her security objectives including Russia: in a multipolar world. The second and equally big step followed Thursday, August 30, in Helsinki, at the news conference after a work meeting with Finland’s president Niinisto...